Clouds Thicken

SALINAS, Calif. (KION) - Temperatures drop for inland areas on Sunday as the big hot ridge weakens and a cut off low to our south slowly moves northward. Temperatures aloft drop 10-15ºF for our area which will be realized for all inland and mountainous areas. On the coast, the deepening marine layer will make it easier for clouds to stick around Sunday afternoon and thus, coastal temps will cool as well. The marine layer will continue to deepen into Monday as a trough digs in from the north. The deepening processes may help encourage coastal drizzle late Sunday into Monday as well.

Air Quality: Good to Moderate    

Sunday: Low clouds and patchy fog stick around the coast with some afternoon breaks. Becoming mostly sunny inland. Cooler, with coastal highs in the low to upper 60s and 70s to low 90s inland. Breezy onshore winds becoming windy up valleys late in the day. Clouds thicken late with patchy drizzle for coastal areas.

Overnight: Widespread low clouds for the coast and inland valleys. Patchy drizzle on the south/east sides of the bay. Lows in the upper 40s to low 50s. Higher elevation areas may catch a glimpse of aurora borealis.

Monday: Overcast with coastal drizzle in the morning, then becoming partly cloudy on the coast and mostly sunny inland. Slightly warmer on the coast with highs in the 60s to low 70s and slightly cooler inland with highs in the low 70s to upper 80s. Breezy onshore and up-valley winds.

Extended: We’ll remain sandwiched between high pressure over the Pacific and troughing over the American West through the end of the week. I’d expect seasonable temperatures and the daily cycle of coastal low clouds. Some inland warming expected by the weekend.

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This week's normal temperatures:      
--COASTAL CITIES--     
LOW: 51ºF     
HIGH: 67ºF      
--INLAND CITIES--      
LOW: 48ºF      
HIGH: 78ºF     
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The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center for June 8^th – 14^th calls for the likelihood of ABOVE normal temperatures and near normal precipitation.     
- ENSO (El Niño/La Niña) STATUS: Neutral     
- ENSO Forecast: Neutral conditions persist through summer & possibly into next winter.       
-Area drought status: Abnormally dry for portions of southern San Benito and southeastern Monterey Counties. Drought-free for the remainder of the KION coverage area.        
-Monterey Bay Sea Surface Temperature as of June 1^st : 55.1ºF (avg. of 7 buoys) [Historic June Avg. SST: 56.7ºF]